Titanium (An America Singer Story)
by FanFictionatic
Summary: (Takes place after The Elite) When America Singer gets thrown in a river on her 18th birthday, she was believed to be dead and out of the Selection. Luckily, she finds herself in a place called Creta. Now that she can't go back to compete, she has no choice but to live the Cretan way and join the 'trainees.' While doing so, America discovers she is indeed stronger than Titanium.
1. Introduction

(A/N: Hey guys! This is my first story on ! Please try to read and review. It's also my first time doing fanfics. I usually write original pieces.)

* * *

Run.

That was the first thing that came to my mind when the rebels got Aspen. "Run, Mer, run!" he said. "I'll hold them off. Run!" I dashed to the safe rooms. The rebel alarm just sounded. I ran to find my maids, maybe Kriss, or Maxon.

But before I could even reach them, a stray hand pulled me towards a wall. I hit my head and tore my gown. I opened my eyes and came face-to-face with a rebel.

"Let me go!" I tried to scream but my mouth was soon covered by a large, sweaty hand.

Before I knew it I was dragged outside by another man. They dragged me away from the palace.

I was hopeless. They didn't tie me up but I was too weak to fight back. After half an hour of kicking and screaming, they dropped me on the ground. I looked around and found myself in front of a tiny wooden shack in the forest.

"Get in!" the bigger rebel said. They pushed my inside and I feel. When I looked up, my face was completely covered in shock.

"King Clarkson? So you were the one behind all the attacks all this time?"

He laughed, "No my dear, no. You must be mistaken. But it took me a while to negotiate with them though." I looked at him confused.

The king glared at the two men by my side. "Finish what's need to be done."

And with that one statement, they tied my hands and feet and place me inside a big, brown sack. They sealed the sack with me inside and cut small gashes on it for me to see.

"Happy 18th birthday, America Singer, and goodbye."

* * *

The rebels carried me off. I screeched. "You can't do this!" But he already did. Later on I heard the sound of a fast flowing river.

They were going to drown me to death.

"Alright Dean, let's get this done! Hold still you brat!"

"One!" the other guy, Dean, counted.

"Two!" I closed my eyes and said my last prayers.

"Three!" and just like that, I was thrown in the raging water.

* * *

Well, happy birthday to me.


	2. Chapter 1: Found

(A/N: Hey guys! It's me FanFictionatic. And here's the first chapter of my story. Please continue to follow and favorite. Thanks a lot for the support.)

* * *

_"General, I found something!" a voice of a man rang in my ears._

_"What is it soldier?" the general, a woman, replied._

_"It's a sack, and it's got something in it. I think it's an animal or a person, ma'am."_

_"Very well, bring it ashore, will you."_

_And then, everything went black._

* * *

"Miss…"

I groaned as I heard the soft voice. I tried to open my eyes, but I can't seem to move them.

"Miss?"

This time, I tried my best to open them. A bright flash of light struck them at first. Then, I saw a blurred image of a lady in a strange outfit. She had a light brown leather jacket over a white shirt. She wore skinny, tight pants darker than the color of her jacket. A man beside her was wearing the same thing except his shirt was green. It must have been their uniform.

"She's awake general!" the man said. He had a slight hint of Spanish accent in his English.

"I know Toni. I can see that." The general sat down on the chair placed near me. "How are you feeling?" she asked.

"I'm fine but… where… where am I?" I slowly sat up straight and looked around my surroundings.

"You're in the infirmary. We found you a week ago between some rocks near a river in Illea. I'm General Ivy. Don't worry, you're safe now." She touched my forehead and then tucked a stray strand of my red hair behind my ear. She had straight black hair that matched her eyes. She looked like she was in her thirties already.

"I've been out for a week?" I asked. She nodded.

"You are actually lucky you're still alive! We thought you were a goner!" the guy, Toni, said as he went beside me as well. He appeared to be the same age as me, maybe only a little older. He had messy brown hair to match his brownish skin tone and grass green eyes. He wore a cheerful expression which made me like him instantly.

"Well, since I'm all better now I might as well get going!" I pushed myself off the bed as I spoke to them. I realized my gown was replaced with a loose shirt and some pajamas. "Thanks for taking care of me but I have a strict schedule to follow and I have an upcoming report and interview this week. So, would you guys ever so kindly tell me the shortest possible way back to Illea, specifically back to the palace?"

Toni and General Ivy just looked at each other. Toni started to laugh loudly.

"Uh… Did I say something wrong?"

"No…" Toni said after a few round of chuckles. "_Chica!_ You must be crazy. We're in Creta!"

"Cre-creta!" I nearly screamed.

Creta, the forgotten country, the land of warriors, the kingdom of bravery and the city of war. As a child, I've heard various stories about how Creta played a big role in the World War, about how many men died to fight and about how they paved their way to victory. But now, I'm here standing on the very sacred ground where battles taken place.

The one we all believed was destroyed because of the war.

"I thought Creta was completely wiped out of the map!" I said while sitting back down to the side of my bed.

"Well that's because you live in Illea. They don't know a thing or two about how we live now." General Ivy sat down beside me. "Your country is too headstrong to join us for alliances. They want to prove that they don't need us to win their war with New Asia. Well, you've seen how it's working out."

"Badly," I confess.

"What is your business in the Illean palace?" Toni suddenly asked.

"Uh…" I didn't really know how to explain it. "I'm one of the girls in the Selection. You know-"

"Yes, the competition in which the prince chooses who to marry, thirty-five girls, so on, so forth. And then?"

"I'm part of the final six, the Elite. Actually right now we're just four ladies left."

Toni stared at me for a long time, trying to connect the pieces. Then, his brain clicked.

"You're America Singer!" I nodded.

General Ivy smiled at Toni's reaction, "Well, I'm a little star struck." I laugh.

Toni though, straightened his uniform, "I didn't introduce myself properly! I'm Antonio Bienvenido, but you can call me Toni!"

"Thanks… Toni." He smiled.

"So…" I stood up and walked around the infirmary. Besides us three and two nurses, it was empty. "This is Creta…"

"Yep, this is Creta." General Ivy stood up and clasped her hand on my shoulder. "Now let's get you cleaned up and dressed. Then after that we can eat breakfast."

Breakfast. The word was enough to make my mouth water and my stomach growl in hunger. I've been in a coma for a week and all I could think of is eggs and bacon, with a side of toasted bread or pancakes.

"Follow us Lady Singer!" Toni said. He led the way along with General Ivy. I noticed that their leather jackets had logos behind. General Ivy's coat of arms was two swords intersecting each other and wrapped with a wreath. Toni's was two torches which also intersected but only lit one big flame. I tried to read the word written below the logo.

BETA

We walked and walked until we reached an elevator which we rode on to go to the second floor.

"This is the second floor of the building. It's designed to hold new visitors or trainees who haven't been sorted out to their squad."

"What squad are you in Toni?" I asked.

"Oh, I'm in BETA. It's an all boys squad. Our counterpart is DELTA, the all girls squad. As of now, we're the highest in the squad rankings."

"Is there an ALPHA?"

General Ivy looked at me and said, "The ALPHA squad is allotted only for people who have done significantly on their training or on their squad performance. Training lasts for five months or more depends on the level or ranking. To be an ALPHA you must have a total average score of 95 up to a hundred and have contributed something that has done well in Creta."

"What? Nobody has reached that level?"

"My score was 94.87. Pity," Toni said shaking his head.

"All the ALPHA members have been transferred to the Administrator Rank, like me. Until then, nobody was able to reach ALPHA level."

We passed a bunch of rooms until we got to the last one.

"This will be your room for now America."

I opened the door and walked in. It wasn't as big as my room in the palace, but it was bigger than my room in Carolina. It had a single bed with blue covers and one big pillow. Beside my bed was a tall lampshade. The other side had a bedside table. It had a small closet with a chest of drawers on its right. The walls were decorated with flowers hanging on branches.

"I know this isn't as glamorous as your bedroom in the palace but, it'll do well. Until we can contact the king and queen of Illea about your whereabouts, you could stay here."

I faced General Ivy and held her two hands, "Thank you so much for finding me and allowing me to stay."

"Oh don't thank me, thank Toni. Without him, he wouldn't have seen your sack stuck in between a bunch of rocks."

I nodded at her and face Toni with a big smile on my face, "Thanks a lot Toni. I owe you my life."

Toni blushed, "What! No, _chica_! You're overreacting! It was nothing, really."

"Now," General Ivy said. "Go hit the showers, change into some comfortable clothes and meet us at the cafeteria at nine. Okay?"

"Okay."

"Alright soldier! Let's go straight to the bell to wake the others up!" General Ivy started walking briskly through the corridors.

"_Si!_" Toni ran to her, trying to catch up.

I did what she told me. As soon as they disappeared, I went into the second floor shower room, which was empty, and took a quick bath. I went back in my room to choose suitable clothing inside my closet. I picked a plain white shirt and a denim pair of jeans. A pair of sneakers was laid out for me, too. I slipped into them and checked the time on the wall clock in my room. It was nearly nine so I decided to go to straight to the cafeteria.

I asked several people where the cafeteria was located. I even heard some faint whispers saying:_ 'Is that America Singer?' 'Yeah, she pretty much looks like her.'_

I finally got a straight decent answer and went down to the first floor. I walked through the big doors of the cafeteria. The place was loaded with people in white shirts that were the same as mine, only they all wore brown pants.

I looked around and saw Toni waving his two arms at me. I passed through the crowd. I kept on saying _'excuse me'_ or _'sorry' _because I either hit someone with my hand or stepped on somebody's foot.

I finally reached their table. They were seated with some other members. They were all boys and had the same logo on Toni's jacket so I assumed they were all from the BETA squad.

"Boys, this is Miss America. She will be joining us for a few short days, just until we could send her home." General Ivy suddenly appeared behind me.

"Wait, wait, wait a minute!" The guy sitting next to Toni stood up. He had sandy blonde hair that almost looked white. His skin was almost pale in color. "That's _the_ America Singer?"

I couldn't do anything but stare and nod.

"Well, Lady Singer, I'm James Tesla." He held out his hand and I nervously shook it.

"Nice to meet you James, I really appreciate it."

I let go of his hand. The others started introducing their names as well. Richard, George, Shaun, Emil, all their names seem to mix up and blur in my mind because there were too many.

After a minute or two, General Ivy told the boys to prepare for squad training. They all left and said their goodbyes to me.

And so, I was left alone at the table.

I didn't have the appetite to even bite a single piece of toast. I thought of the Selection and how it was going without me. I thought of Maxon when he gave me his birthday present, a shiny pin in a shape of a songbird. I thought of my maids, Marlee, Aspen and Kriss. I thought of how Celeste must have been so happy to find out I was gone or dead.

"Yo!" I girl's voice brought me back to the real world. She had black, obsidian hair that was all held in one braid. Her eyes were deep green. She had a mischievous smile on her face, almost like she was up to something. Behind her a boy with the same shade of her hair and the same color of her eyes stood with two plates on his hands holding some eggs, bacon and bread.

"Hey, do you mind if we sit here?"

"No," I said happy to have some unlikely company. "Not at all."


	3. Chapter 2: Unlikely Friends

(A/N: This chapter is shorter than the first one, so please bear with it. Thank you for the continuous support. Please read and review!)

* * *

"Thanks." The girl sat opposite to me beside the boy.

"No problem," I said.

"Are you a trainee, too?" the boy asked while putting the plates down the table.

"No, I'm just staying here for a while."

"For how long?" the girl quickly countered as she sliced her bacon.

"Maybe about a week or two." I was starting to get a little irritated.

"Why?" the boy asked again.

"Well, it's a rather long story…"

"Please do tell!" they both said in unison.

"You two knock it out!" another girl, this time with brown, curly hair and bangs came walking in while holding a glass of orange juice. "Sorry if they bothered you a lot."

I laughed, "It's okay. I'm quite used to it."

"You are?" the black-haired girl said. "Oh, sorry, I completely forgot. I'm Jaydinalyn by the way, Jaydinalyn Jackson. You can call me Jaydyn."

"And I'm Marcus Jackson. We're twins."

"Twins? Really?" I asked. It was the first time I personally saw twins, especially a boy and a girl. No wonder they looked so alike when they first came

"And I'm Portia Addams; it's very nice to meet you." She sat beside me as I scooted to the next seat.

"I'm America, America Singer."

"Oh. My. Gosh," Jaydyn dropped her fork. "You're the awesome red-head that fought of the guards and kicked ass on that Report? I am a total fan."

"Aww, that's sweet. Thank you."

"My sister is really fond of you," Marcus said while chewing his toast. "She thinks you'd make a wonderful queen, especially when you decided to eliminate the caste systems. She is quite an activist."

"Just spit it out already brother dear, you want to stop the castes as much as she does." Jaydyn glared at her brother.

"Alright, maybe I want a fair rule in monarchy, so what?" Marcus continued eating. It was fun watching them argue.

"Pshh, your heart's made out of stone!" Jaydyn crossed her arms on the table and gave an angry pout. "I prefer a parliamentary government if you ask me."

"Everybody knows, presidential governments are better," he started cutting his eggs and still kept a straight face. I looked at Portia who smiled at me and mouthed _'I'm used to it.'_

"Stop being dramatic Jay, it'll make you even uglier. Then all the guys will just continue hitting on Rooka Spice." Marcus snickered while Jaydyn sat upright again. "Don't talk about her right in front of my food," she said.

"Rooka Spice? Who's Rooka Spice?" I asked.

Jaydyn put her head close to mine, "See that blonde girl over there with the purple streaks?" I nodded. The blonde girl, Rooka, was seated next to a boy. Wait no, clinging on the boy for her dear life. He seemed to like it though. She instantly reminded me of Celeste.

"It was my first day here and I was talking to this BETA guy, asking for directions. Then suddenly this… this…" Jaydyn thought for a moment, finding the right words to describe Rooka.

She snapped her fingers, "This overconfident, croaking frog steps on my foot with her designer boots and pushes me aside. Do you even know what she wore that day? A full body suit which was so tight you could see her bones popping out. The v-neck was so low I could have sworn it almost reached her torso. And the worst part was, it was PINK! Hot, dark, luscious, lipstick PINK all over. My eyes were practically burning."

Marcus looked at her sister in disgrace, "That only happened two days ago. Stop acting like she was your enemy since kindergarten. Finish your bacon, or else."

"Sheesh, alright. What do have against bacon?"

"Lady America, why don't you join us three this evening? We're going horseback riding." Portia smiled at me. I only noticed that the color of her eyes was unusual. It was like a prism, changing time to time whenever light reflected it.

"Sounds great to me, since I don't really have plans later. And please, do call me America."

"Great!" Jaydyn said enthusiastically. "You can watch as I defeat Marcus on our races."

"Shut up Jay."

I laughed at the way they fought. It reminded me of when I was little. Kenna, Kota and I would fight non-stop, especially when there was only one last piece of bread left on the dining table.

"How about we give you a short tour outside the gardens while waiting America?" Portia suggested.

"It would be lovely!" Jaydyn said. "Marcus, you could come to if you like."

"Nah. I'm promised some dudes I'd play basketball with them. They seem to be running out of players."

"Fine then, go do your boy stuff." Jaydyn said.

I wondered if Maxon had an interest in boy sports like basketball. I didn't know if he had the skills, or the experience since he never left the walls of the castle. It was hard to imagine Maxon while wearing a jersey, shooting a three-pointer.

"Let's go," Portia said standing up with her half-empty glass.

"Yeah," I said. "Yeah, sure."

* * *

Portia and I walked side-by-side while Jaydyn kept on skipping and pointing to different flowers, giving me their scientific names or their origins.

"This one's a poppy flower!" She picked out a white flower with round petals and an orangish center. "It was used in the World Wars, to symbolize that they would never do it again. Well, you see how that worked out."

Jaydyn put the flower on her ear. She smiled at us and continued hopping her way through the bushes. I smiled on how energetic she was. She was like the smarter version of May. I tried to picture May being giddy while telling the family about properties and chemicals, stuff like that.

"Oh! Here's my favorite!" Jaydyn skipped towards a small tree and picked another flower, this time it had big, orange petals and a long stamen. She ran back to us and stuck the flower behind my ear.

"It fits you! That's a Hibiscus. It's called a perfect flower, scientifically because it has the combination of an ovule and a stamen; the female and male parts of a flower."

"You look pretty America," Portia said.

"Of course she's pretty! A future queen needs to be pretty!" Jaydyn said.

I sighed and sat down a nearby bench. For the first time in my life, I actually missed the palace. Not just Maxon or Marlee or my family, but the whole palace. I even missed Celeste rubbing all my faults on my face. I missed Sylvia giving us instructions and lessons no matter how boring it was. One thing was certain though, I didn't miss the King. Not one bit.

"America?" Jaydyn, suddenly concerned sat next to me followed by Portia.

"You must love him very much," Portia suddenly spoke. "What's his name? Maxon?" I nodded.

"Don't worry." Jaydyn stroked my hair, trying to bring back the joyful atmosphere we had. "You'll go back to the palace in a jiffy! Now, come on, We still haven't brought you to the butterfly house!" She pulls me up and starts hopping again. "Come on! Portia you lead the way for a change!"

All I could do was smile. I wish I had that kind of personality. I want to stay happy even though I face the toughest problems. I admired Jaydyn.

"America!" I heard a familiar voice call out to me. The three of us stop on our tracks.

Toni was running down the pathway we took. He had a saddened look on his face.

"You better see this, immediately."

We ran back to the building, rode an elevator to the fourth third floor and went inside a meeting room with long tables and a bunch of wheel chairs. General Ivy and other officers were sitting on the end, in front of a big flat screen television.

"General Ivy, what is it?" I asked. Toni, Portia and Jaydyn stayed behind me. Marcus suddenly appeared less than a second at the door. He must have seen us running.

"What happened?" he whispered at Jaydyn. She just shrugged.

General Ivy turns the television on and changes the channel. The first thing I saw was Maxon, who stood on a podium with various microphones sitting on top of it.

"We will be postponing the Selection for about two months because of a certain loss. It appears that after a week of searching, we see drops of blood and torn cloth of her gown near the river at the forest. It is believed to be that Lady America is dead."

_No._

I wanted to scream at the television, at Maxon. I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs that I'm still here, that I'm still alive. I'm just halfway across the country.

"The three remaining ladies will be sent back to their home provinces, until then, we'll settle things with the rebels. That is all I have to say now."

I watch as Maxon climbs down the podium in a stern face. I fell on my knees. I couldn't get myself to cry or to shout. I was just staring at the television, even when the screen turned black.

* * *

What am I going to do now?


	4. Extra: Maxon's Plight

(A/N: Hey guys! I decided to post a Maxon POV because I wasn't quite done with the third chapter. Here's a treat for continuous positive comments... Here are my replies to the reviews. These may only be few but I appreciate them with my whole heart.)

**Guest: Thanks a lot! :D**

**Guest 2: Awww, thanks :) I hope you'll love the next chapter.**

**Megsb24: It's already fixed. Sorry about that. Thanks for liking my story.**

**sarahy: I will, but only on Fridays and weekends.**

**Melody: Thanks! Yeah, it sounds sadistic but you know King Clarkson. I thought maybe after a few months that America's still not eliminated, he got tired and annoyed, so yeah... RIVER! :)**

* * *

"America!"

I was about to run to her when my mother pulled me back. "No, Maxon, it's too dangerous!"

I was forced to stand there, watching my America get dragged away by two rebels. A pack of gurads entered in position.

"Hold your fire! You might hit her!" I shouted.

Once they disappeared, a new group of rebels surrounded the area.

"Fire!"

I grabbed three guards rather quite roughly, "After this, go find Lady America in the woods."

"Yes sir."

"Fire at will!"

The rest of the ladies ran as I countered orders to the guards. I was sweating. What would happen to America?

I let the thoughts be cast aside. First, I needed to get rid of these rebels.

"Fire!"

* * *

"I'm sorry your majesty. We'll just continue the search tomorrow, deeper through the woods."

"Very well, thank you."

The three guards bowed and left. I paced my study. What if she was hurt, or tortured, or safe but lost deep in the forest.

What if she was dead?

I mentally slapped myself. No. America's brave. She can't be dead that easily. There's still a chance she got away and ran. Maybe she'll be back in the palace by herself in no time.

Who am I kidding? We were dealing with Southern rebels. They wouldn't second guess in killing innocent people.

"Maxon," I angrily told myself. "She's still out there. Stop whining and get back to work!"

* * *

The search took about a week. This time I joined my guards in the heart of the woods. We rode on horses. We were calling, shouting, searching for America for about two hours.

"Your Majesty!"

I turned around and saw Officer Reid holding up a piece of cloth. It was ripped off from America's blue birthday dress.

It was covered with blood.

I went closer, going down my horse. I grabbed it and stared at it for a long time. I slowly began to feel my knees weakening. I slowly knelt down, letting the fallen leaves and dirt touch my pants.

"I'm sorry." He patted my back and returned to the group, telling them to stop the search.

We rode back to the palace and at the same time, I told the girls what happened. They tried to look shocked and concerned. At night, I didn't eat dinner. I stayed locked in my room. I sat down on my bed.

I let the tears come out of my eyes.


	5. Chapter 3: Fairytale

(A/N: I finished the chapter a little earlier. So here my lovelies, enjoy!)

* * *

"America!" Jaydyn suddenly surged towards me. Toni, Portia and Marcus followed. I was still kneeling on the floor, tears forming in my eyes, but I didn't let them rain down on my face.

The four knelt beside me. Portia was patting my back. General Ivy had a sympathetic look on her face.

Thoughts began racing through my mind. What will happen to my family? What will happen to my maids? What will happen to the whole Selection?

Another general sitting beside General Ivy had a stern look. "What will we do with her Ivana?"

General Ivy sighed, "I guess there's only one way for you to survive here."

"And what's that?" I ask.

Marcus was the first one to stand up. "You need to become one of us."

* * *

I sat down on my bed, quietly recollecting my thoughts.

A white shirt and brown pants were hung on my closet handle. It was my new uniform.

I had to become a trainee.

General Ivy and General Richardson, the man beside her awhile ago, told me that being a foreign trainee was hard. Some Cretans treat other people differently. It might take a month for me to adjust.

Someone suddenly knocked on my door.

"Come in," I blandly say.

Jaydyn practically jumped inside holding horse riding gear. Marcus and Portia were behind her.

"Aww, why the long face," she said. "Come on! We got a horse just for you!"

Her cheery personality made me smile a little. I got up and started walking out with them to the fields.

* * *

When we got to the stables, four horses were prepared outside. The three certainly knew what was theirs. By then, only one horse was left. It was a black stallion, a little taller than the other horses.

"That's your horse," Marcus said.

"Thanks a lot. You really had to put up with this. He's a real beauty."

"Marcus picked him," Jaydyn said.

When I turned to look at Marcus he was already on his horse. "It was tough picking a horse for you since I just met you today, but he'll do well. His name's Slay."

"Slay," I said slowly still full of wonder.

"Well," Portia hopped on her mare as well. "Let's ride!"

We rode for about an hour. I felt as light as a feather. No problems in the Selection, no reports to be done, no Silvia to keep on nagging at me, no Celeste maltreating me, no King Clarkson to try to kill me.

No more waiting for Maxon to finally choose me.

"Girl, why are you always deep in thought?" Jaydyn asked.

"Please Jaydyn, if you were a girl who's actually alive but believed to be dead you'd do the same thing," Marcus reasoned out.

"You two better quit it before you start another fight," Portia scolded.

"Oh! America! I wanted to show you something!" Jaydyn suddenly piped up.

"Correction: WE wanted to show you something," Marcus said.

"Let's go! To the butterfly house!"

* * *

"Woah!" I said. "Calm down… Calm down Slay…"

Instead of seeing a green house filled with flowers, they led me to huge, thick bushes and vines. We tied our horses near a big tree. We walked all the way.

"Uhh… Are you sure you guys are taking me to a butterfly house?" I asked.

"They're not exactly butterflies but… you'll just see later," Marcus said. We went on.

As we got deeper and deeper through the bushes, I began to hear a faint sound. It sounded like bells ringing in hormony.

"We're getting close," Portia assured.

It became louder and louder. Then, a faint voice of a female could be heard singing.

_We sing precious melodies_

_ That no one in the out can hear_

_ With all our voices in harmony_

_ It can't be broken by fear_

_ When the sun goes down, in goes the dark_

_ Our lights flicker in bliss_

_ No evil can touch or break or mark_

_ Not even the darkest abyss_

It was repeated again and again. I pushed through a thorny bush and luckily, only had some small scratches. When I looked forward I saw a small tunnel as big as my little brother, Gerard. We lowered our heads and passed through.

"Here we are," Jaydyn said.

I was the last out of the tunnel. I could tell by the look on their faces my expression was priceless.

"Woah," I couldn't help but stare.

The first thing I saw was a tree at the center which was draped in pastel colored flowers. Fireflies were flying around the place. Then I saw homes that looked like birdhouses hanging from every tree. They were decorated differently but they were all cute and pretty.

"Here they come!" Jaydyn exclaimed.

Singing, laughing and dancing in the air were little people with butterfly wings attached to their back. Fairies. I was actually seeing real-life fairies which I only heard in stories. They were about as big as my hand. When they saw us they went closer, waving their arms, telling us to come forward.

The three did what they were told. I only stood there, still in awe of what I was seeing at the moment.

"Come on America," Portia said.

I slowly trudged forward, carefully avoiding wildflowers that grew. We slowly made our way to the big tree at the center. The fairies, who were guiding us, went behind it.

I took a peek behind the tree and gasped.

It was more than what I expected. The place was bigger than I thought. There were more trees which meant more houses, which meant more fairies. This time, the trees were decorated with little lanterns and flowers. Fairies gathered together in the middle.

The biggest fairy, the one standing in the very middle of the circle, saw us and flew to our direction.

"Jaydyn, Marcus and Portia, lovely seeing you here," she said. "And who is this, another friend of yours?"

"Oh, I'm America, America Singer," I said slightly bowing down.

"No need to be formal dear," she said. "I'm Louisita, Queen of the Light Fairies."

Queen Louisita turned to Marcus and Jaydyn, "Have you come to see the show?"

"Yes," Marcus said. "We decided to bring America along, since we found your musical quite impressive the last time we were here..."

"We were here two days ago. Why do you always have to be so formal?" Jaydyn asked.

"I was born with true intellect and poise. Don't blame me."

Jaydyn was going to say something but it was cut off by a loud ear piercing scream.

"Where are my pixies?!" a pink-haired fairy came flying and stayed next to the queen.

"Delilah, stay calm…" a blonde fairy went next to the pink-haired one.

"They're still preparing for the opening act. Don't worry too much," another one came by, this time with purple hair.

"Flora, Trixie, I can't stay calm! I want this light show to be spot on," Delilah said.

"Delilah, what seems to be the problem?" Queen Louisita asked.

"Pixies. Flirts. Bet they're drunk on nectar. Show's about to start. Why me?" Delilah said extremely exhausted.

"America, Jaydyn, Marcus, Portia, this is Delilah. She's the director of the light show. Beside her are Flora and Trixie, respectively."

"Nice to meet you," Trixie, the blonde, said.

"We're so sorry about Delilah," Flora, the purple-head, said.

"Yeah, sorry. I just couldn't control myself," Delilah bashfully pouted.

I smiled and laughed. These three fairies are exactly just like my… I could feel a lump in my throat at thought.

They act exactly like my maids.

"Why don't you girls get another group to open while waiting for the pixies?" the queen suggested.

"The Mariposas?" Trixie asked.

"No," Delilah quickly contradicted. "They're for the closing act. Save the best for the last."

"How about the Monarchs?" Flora suggested.

"Perfect! Thanks Flora! Bye Your Highness! I promise everything will be in perfection!" And as quick as lightning, the three flew away.

"Well," I said. "They're quite extraordinary."

"They are," Queen Louisita smiled. "Why don't you four sit down first?"

We sat down on two large logs, near enough to see the performance. Portia said the show starts exactly on seven. While we were waiting, we saw the sun slowly descending the sky.

"Is it too late to join the party?" a familiar voice said.

I looked behind me and saw General Ivy along with Toni, two of the BETA boys along with three DELTA girls.

"General Ivy," I said.

"Mind if we sit beside you guys?" Toni asked.

"Not at all," Portia said.

"You guys are here to watch, too?" Marcus asked.

"Yeah," James Tesla answered. "It's actually my second time."

James was holding hands with a DELTA. She had chocolate brown eyes and shiny blonde hair. She nudged him in the ribs. He looked down and smiled. She went closer to James and rested her head on his chest. I felt my heart break again into a million pieces. It reminded me of Maxon and me during the rebel attack after my report about deleting the caste system.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Delilah's voice boomed throughout the field without microphones. She was holding a green bud instead. "As director, I am proud to present to you, The Everlest Light Fairies!"


	6. Chapter 4: The Prophecy

(A/N: This chapter is quite shorter than the others. I'm working on the others on advance from now on. Read on!)

**Guest 1: I'll update as soon as I can. Thanks for reading!**

**Guest 2: Yeah, I really have to update :)**

**sarahy: I know but it'll be happy and well... a little bloody afterwards.**

**p: hahaha... I wish it would be. Thanks for reading :)**

* * *

It took a few moments of silence before the fireworks came out. They were so blue and so bright when they exploded in the sky. Instantly, a group of fairies with big, blue wings came out. They flew in different formations and lit everything in their path while keeping up with the fast tune of their music.

The Monarchs did a splendid job with the opening. The Pixies, unexpectedly, came on stage after their performance. Not like the previous team, the pixies sang in front of the crowd. Their finale, the high-note and a spectacular blast of fireworks at the end, was fantastic.

A few more teams performed. An all boy fairy group did a sort of battle presentation. They were pretending to fight with each other while light blasted around them. Their finale was a dragon shaped firework.

The last ones were the Mariposas. They were the final act so I guess they were the best of the best.

A spotlight shone above a fairy. Everyone suddenly became silent. The fairy sang.

_We sing precious melodies_

_ That no one in the out can hear_

_ With all our voices in harmony_

_ It can't be broken by fear_

She was singing the song we heard earlier. The spotlight around her grew bigger, showing big lotus flowers behind her. They slowly opened revealing seven other Mariposas who sang in chorus.

_ The sun goes down, in goes the dark_

_ Our lights flicker in bliss_

_ No evil can touch or break or mark_

_ Not even the darkest abyss_

The word 'abyss' was prolonged into a high-note. I was impressed. Even I couldn't sing that high. But if this was a light show, where were their lights or fireworks?

My question got answered a second after I asked. Fast and lively music started playing. They repeated the lyrics twice but this time more enthusiastically. We clapped along to the beat.

The flowers they were once standing on released fireworks while the fairies were dancing. They were glowing in different shades of pink.

Everyone clapped and cheered once they were done. They even got a standing ovation from the fairies in front of us.

"How are you guys enjoying the show?" Delilah flew to us and asked.

"It's stunning and beautiful Delilah," I said.

Suddenly out of nowhere, the lead fairy suddenly fainted. Her light went out. The remaining Mariposas panicked.

"What!" I heard Delilah shout. "Not again Bella, not again…"

"What do you mean by again?" Marcus asked.

"Bella's our oracle. She just replaced the old one about two months ago, so she's still in the adjusting part. She can't feel if a prophecy is coming or what. She faints, recites, faints again and wakes up like not remembering a single thing."

I immediately stood up and went closer, followed by General Ivy as well. When we got to Bella, her body was glowing in a green color. She opened her eyes and floated. She recited:

**Weak as she starts**

** Strong as she grows**

** Hidden in her heart**

** Her strength will slowly show**

** Her heroism hidden**

** In the shadows it cloaks**

** But when blood is spilt**

** She will end it in one blow**

Bella stopped glowing and roughly fell down caught be the Mariposas.

"She'll be out until tomorrow," Flora said.

"It's the same prophecy she recited before," Trixie said.

"Really?" I asked.

"Bella has been acting strange," Queen Louisita came forward. "She usually recites once or twice a month but she has recited the same thing yesterday, and the day after that."

"And also, this prophecy is quite different from the others. This is the very first prophecy that's about a woman since Claudia Reaper," General Ivy added.

"Who's Claudia Reaper?" I asked. My three friends slowly approached the stage as well along with the squad members.

"Trixie, Flora, and Delilah?" the queen said.

The three fairies moved their hands in a circular motion. It slowly formed into colorful dust. They threw it to the sky. A small aurora formed showing an image of a girl with short black hair who was about my age. She held a black sword that was about her height. She also possessed a pair of white wings.

"Claudia Reaper was the very first female ALPHA and the very first person to get a hundred on the scoreboard," General Ivy explained. "She went to a very important quest alone, without her squad or any aid."

"There, she found her sword. It was hidden in a small temple in the middle of the Caribbean unprotected. Based on her, when she held the sword, she suddenly felt its power rushing to her. She grew white wings on her back."

"Well, the sword wasn't actually unguarded. A pack of pirates sealed her way out. Pirates were immune to guns, and it was the only weapon she had useful and two knives. She tried using the sword. Though it looked big and heavy, it felt light on her arms."

I nodded slightly as General Ivy continued, "With only one slash for each pirate, they either lay dead or weak on the floor. That's why she decided to call it the Reaper, as in a n actual reaper, claiming the light out of anyone who dares to battle with it."

"But after a year, she discovered something new about her beloved sword. An engraved flower on bottom of the hilt of it was slightly loose. She pressed it, hoping that it would tighten. Instead, she grew black wings. Her hair became as red as fire, so as her eyes. The Reaper grew longer and larger."

Claudia's transformation was seen in the aurora. Fire surrounded her as her hair slowly changed bright red from its roots to its tips. She closed her eyes and when she opened them, her irises became of the same color as the fire that surrounded her. Her sword grew longer, taller than her. Her wings, which were once as white as the clouds in the sky, became as dark as the night.

"She was able to control her transformation, but she went crazy after five years. She decided to hide the sword in some place farther than the Caribbean. It took her a year in the infirmary to stop the hallucinations. She died just after I started my own training."

Claudia Reaper's face slowly crumpled and faded away. The colors of the aurora went out. I faced my friends who were still amazed, looking up at the sky.

"Your Highness!" A pixie flew by. "Bella, she's awake and she has something to say."

"What is it Donna?" Queen Louisita looked concerned.

"Her voice is slurred. Even Madeline couldn't understand what she's saying."

"Bring her in," she said.

Bella was lying on a leaf carried by the queen's guards. She was set down before us. Queen Louisita went forward. Bella slowly opened her eyes.

"Bella, what is it?"

She slowly sat up and fluttered her wings for a while. She looked around the place again and again until her eyes stopped and stared at mine.

The others noticed it as well. They all turned towards me.

"She's the one!" Bella said pointing to me.

"The one that what?" The queen held Bella's hands gently.

* * *

"She's the one in the prophecy."


	7. Chapter 5: Training

(A/N: IT HAS BEEN YEARS. Nah I'm just exaggerating. I'm soooo sorry for not updating for a very long time... I had a writer's block so I worked on the future chapters, neglecting this. I'll be updating a little slower, but not as slow as this! Here you are guys, enjoy!)

* * *

I woke up to the sound of the alarm clock sitting on top of my bedside table. It was my first day of training. I groggily went out of my bed. I expected to hear the voice of Anne waking me up, but then I remembered I was in Creta. I was out of the Selection. I was believed to be dead.

Last night, a fairy named Bella accused me of being the girl in the prophecy. That made me even more horrified. I took a quick, cold, shower and changed into me trainee uniform, a pair of brown pants, a white shirt with the Everlest Soldier crest at the back and big, black combat boots. I pulled my hair up into a ponytail and went outside.

After eating breakfast, all the trainees lined up on the second floor depending on their gender, and then their surname. I was between the names: Seeker and Slaughter. General Richardson warned me that most of their trainees had already undergone the basic fighting techniques in their elementary years, so I might get left behind. After five minutes of waiting, General Ivy appeared. They all instantly stood straight and placed their right clenched fist on the left side of their chest, a salute. I tried to copy them as quickly as I could.

We went up the elevator by fives. Once my group reached the training floor, we widened our eyes in sight. Everything was so… modern and machine-operated. The colors varied from blue to white to silver. Huge stocks of weapons were located on one side of the room, and targets on the other. We went back to form the line.

Once everyone was there, General Ivy followed. She went in front and grabbed a microphone on a round table. "Let's start off with the introductions. I am General Ivana from OMEGA or the Administration Rank, and welcome to the Everlest Soldiers training room. Here is where we will train from Monday to Wednesday, and then on Thursday we hit the field. During Friday, we have this so called 'Weekly Completion Test.' Every week, we teach you something new, and at the end of that week, we will set different stages of activities you need to accomplish. This is very vital because it not only affects your training rank but it will also affect your final score and which squad you will go to, besides the Completion Exam at the end of our training."

"There are different squads for you to be in," General Ivy continued. XETA and THETA accept trainees with scores 75 to 79, both girls and boys. KAPPA qualifies soldiers which have scores of 80 to 84. GAMMA squad will require people having 85 to 89 points on the score boards. BETA is for men who are able to have 90 to 94 points and DELTA does the same for ladies. These two are the highest possible squads you can get into for eleven years, but if you are able to break that record, you will get into the ALPHA squad."

I felt my fellow trainees either become tense when they heard the squad name or admire the word probably wishing they would rank that high. "To become an ALPHA, you must be able to attain a great 95 to 100 points on your record. Sometimes, people attain more than a hundred, like Claudia Reaper, receiving a hundred and two points."

"Claudia Reaper hail!" the trainees all yelled. I guess she was even more respected than I expected her to be.

"All of you soldiers are aged from 16 to 18 years old. As you can see we have ten tables set before you. All in all, you are fifty trainees, so we will divide all of you be five to have a total of ten groups. You will treat your group mates as if they are your family, as if you have the same blood that flows in your veins."

General looked at us for a while before proceeding, "Portia Addams, Jaydinalyn and Marcus Jackson, Francis Goud and America Singer, squad one."

Once my name was announced, a storm of whispering broke out. Everyone's eyes were following me as I walked to my table.

"Judgmental people," Jaydyn said as I sat beside her. "They don't know what you're going through America."

"Just let them be," Portia added.

The new face, Francis Goud, was very pale with brown hair and big, green eyes. He looked like he took twenty cups of coffee this morning. He kept on staring at the ceiling.

* * *

Once everyone was called, General Ivy asked us to settle down.

"Now," she said. "Let's start with the basic fighting techniques."

It was horrible. We were just starting off with the positions before fighting when I accidentally slipped when I did my first kick. So much for making a good first impression… Most of them were also having a hard time, now that they had to follow correct posture, but it wasn't as embarrassing as what happened to me.

After General Ivy taught us, she called us by pair to joust in the middle. I got paired with Gemma Slaughter, the girl behind me on the line. She had an athletic figure, a boyish physique. Her hair was hastily chopped until her shoulders. She's twice as big as me. My throws were nothing compare to those she gave me. She kicked me in the stomach so fast I didn't see it coming. She also threw punches occasionally. Our 'fight' was just beginning and I was about to collapse. Lucky for me I only stumbled away from her which probably signaled that she already won.

"Good job Gemma, but your position when giving punches needs more improvement. As for you America, well, we need a lot of work to do."

Good thing Francis Goud, Rooka Spice and some girls did no less well than me. Rooka Spice cried out when her nail broke because Jaydyn accidentally slapped her hand against hers while sparring.

"I win," Jaydyn said without emotion.

* * *

General Ivy let us take five. I was drinking in my water bottle when Gemma approached me. She took my bottle from my hands and walked closer. She had some other grim looking goons behind her.

"Aren't you that red-head who joined the Selection in Illea?" I nod slowly.

"Huh, no wonder you're so weak. Thankfully, Rooka's weaker than you, or else you'd be the joke of the century." Her friends snickered.

She threw my water bottle back at me so hard that I doubled over when it hit my stomach.

"See you tomorrow, Lady Singer…"

* * *

After training, we were asked to jog around the grass field for ten consecutive laps to end the session. Some were starting to faint and collapse during the seventh lap. Rooka Spice and her girls gave up at the fourth one. Luckily, I was able to survive and complete the run. It was only then that I realized that this training session will need much more sacrificing than I did in the Selection.

We hit the showers and changed into our casual wear. I chose a floral blouse and denim jeans to go with it. I tied my hair into a ponytail. We were given the rest of the day for ourselves. Portia, Marcus, and Jaydyn asked me to join them for another horseback riding session.

"Hey Marcus," Jaydyn said. "What do you think of that Francis Goud guy?"

"He's too quiet to even lay out a first impression on," Marcus said.

"I think he's just shy and left out," Portia chimed in.

"Yeah," I agreed. "Since we four already know each other, he must have thought he should step out of the line first."

After ending my sentence, Slay, my horse, suddenly went crazy and started thrashing around the grass.

"Slay! Woah! Wait! Stop!" I kept screaming words and commands. My friends climbed down their horses to help me but Slay ran off into the forest.

Pulling Slay's reigns forcefully was no use. He kept running and running until we reached a big boulder blocking his way. Thankfully, he finally stopped and calmed down.

"Slay, what is it?"

I didn't have time to wait for an answer because the boulder that was blocking our way started to move itself aside like a door. I told Slay to stay by the nearest tree. I slowly walk inside, hearing my feet break the fallen dried leaves below. In the middle, there was a pedestal. I looked on top to observe the black stone. It had something written on the middle.

The doors unlocked for you, so did this pedestal, which means you are my chosen heir. Use this well, better than I did once.

-C. R.

I touched the initials written by the side. Suddenly, the surface opened up. A sword rose from the pedestal. I slowly reached out my arm to grab it. Even though the object seemed so heavy and large, it was as light as a feather when I grasped it in my hands. I read the letters engraved on the side of the hilt.

The Reaper


End file.
